Your letters on Wisbech Town Council, Elm housing plan, the care crisis and politics
Allotments, housing, care and politics are under scrutiny in this week's Fenland Citizen letters...
Attitude and actions of town council are poor
The Waterlees Road allotments have had the same entrance for at least 80 years. The other week Wisbech Town Council, without any warning, dumped around two tonnes of soil at the gate entrance. When I asked why, I was told that “We (WTC) own the allotments and can do what we want.” I asked once again why. They said: “We have a duty of care to the tenants who use this gate.
“If you enter or leave by this gate, you could have an accident, as it is near a dangerous bend and it will be our fault if you did.
“From now on you will have to use the new allotment entrance that we have made which is around the bend and further up the road.”
I have had an allotment here for 30 years and know of no accidents. The gate has never been an issue and it is useful, as some of the tenants walk or bike to their plots and have been using this gate for years, without any problems.
What annoyed me the most was the town council’s attitude and complete lack of any consultation with the tenants.
Plus our plots have no vehicle access now from the new entrance because the JCB they used to dump the soil has churned up the grass track and turned it to mud.
David Judd
via email
Elm should be left as a village
Even though the village of Elm is at capacity, this did not prevent planning permission being passed for 30 houses on land adjacent to Henry Warby Avenue( almost complete) and as highlighted in the Citizen, 30 houses on land west of Grove Gardens.
Then there is the infill between the villages of Elm and Friday Bridge. Nearly every spare plot has now been filled with large (out of proportion for size of plot) houses.
Now at the beginning of 2022 a planning application will be submitted to construct 60 houses to the north of Gosmoor Lane on land behind Elm Primary School.
This is one development too far and perhaps it explains why some of the larger houses on Gosmoor Lane, which currently have field views, are up for sale.
Once this is officially published I implore the residents of Elm to vociferously object to this.
Elm should be left as a village, not a quasi town
Veronica Trubshaw
Elm
Where will all these staff come from?
As you know, the care sector has been decimated by the lack of migrant workers since Brexit.
So to keep the hospitals clear of patients to admit new Covid patients, thousands of patients will be ruthlessly ejected only to die at home, or get taken back in at A&E a week later?
The Goverment’s answer is that despite the vast lack of care staff , these 14,000 new ghostly apparitions of mobile care staff will drive the 14,000 new hire cars the goverment is going to pay for, so all discharged patients will receive regular home care seven days a week for atleast two hours a day for.
Just like the elderly people currently do. Or does Westminster wake up to reality?
Just wait till heart attack victims are returned home and never see a mobile social care nurse.
Then their dead bodies are discovered a week later, no public enquiry as usual , and life goes on just like the scandal of Grenfell.
“It’s a tragedy and consequently we have put new procedures in to place so this can never happen again.”
Mark Burton
Chatteris
A Labour government is possible
David Silver (Letters, December 15) gives a good all-round summary of political developments over the last 25 years, including under both New Labour and Tory governments.
Boris Johnson’s prime ministership is self-destructing under a mass of sleaze and incompetence.
There may be moves within the Tory party in the Spring from the “men in grey suits” aka the Tory backbench 1922 Committee to replace Boris with current chancellor Rishi Sunak.
Other runners and riders for the Tory premiership are likely to include current foreign secretary Liz Truss and health secretary Sajid Javid. Jeremy Hunt may also throw his hat in the ring again.
The longer Boris is in post the more damage he’ll be doing to the Tory “brand.” Hence why Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is not too keen to call for Boris’ resignation.
However, Mr Silver, like other correspondents to this paper, would like to know more about what Labour stands for and what changes Labour would make in office.
Mr Silver is therefore correct to call for the public ownership of the six big energy companies along with public transport.
I would add that Labour should also commit itself to building one million new council houses, which would mean Fenland Council building 1,500 houses.
I would also add that Labour should commit itself to raising the minimum wage, without any age exemptions, to £15 an hour.
This should be linked to the call to open the books of all companies together with tax credits for small businesses, shopkeepers, and farmers, to help pay for a £15 an hour wage.
Whilst Keir Starmer hasn’t the charisma of Tony Blair, we must remember that Clement Attlee didn’t have much charisma either, but he led Labour to a great victory in 1945.
A Labour government is possible.
John Smithee
Wisbech
